Another creed question

Ok, I have read and I think these are correct statements:

1. Testers in the 2.5 size are likely to be less faked
2. Recently, Creed raised prices
3. Creed is now putting GIT and MI in clear bottles, doing away with the black and gold bottles for each
4. Can't really go by dates anymore, and even then, that is no guarantee of longevity or freshness

Allshewants has some 2.5 testers on the 'bay and since these are gifts, I want to save money but get legit stuff. They run about $74.00. Sure, Id love to get the 4 oz tester for just a little more, but in a black bottle, the chances for "off" or fake juice go up.

Re: Another creed question

Ya, from what I have read around, the testers seems to be a safer bet. As for dates I've recently purchased a bottle of Creed from a known retailer and the dates were scratched off. The product smelled extremely weak compared to the sample I got from theperfumedcourt which smelled fantastic...the reason why I bought the bottle. So I was very disappointed in that regard.

Also I am not sure there is lots of sites that put some creed bottles as EDT where others are EDP I know from what I've read that eau de toilette are much weaker than eau de parfum maybe that could be a reason why the product smelled weaker...I am new at this so I am not 100% positive as I am still researching this.

Re: Another creed question

I have made many purchases from the seller you mention - I have never had a problem with freshness or authenticity. I agree that 2.5 oz bottles are less likely to be faked.

$74 is high enough to be legitimate. I get worried when they are around $40 for 4.0 oz.

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and sorry I could not travel both and be one traveler, long I stood and looked down one as far as I could to where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, ...... I shall be telling this with a sigh somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -- I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference. - Robert Frost

Re: Another creed question

Originally Posted by ToughCool

Yeah I believe from what the SA told me at Niemans they went 10-15% across the board

But at Strawberrynet, the 75ml Baie De Genievre which I was thinking about getting has gone from around US$120 to US$188, which is a 56% increase from the only dealer I can reliably and quickly get genuine supplies from.

Re: Another creed question

I don't know....I feel like if you're paying $100+ for a bottle of this stuff, it better last long and last long. What's all this about fakes, this and that? At that point, is it worth it? Lot #'s and dates? I've had it!

Re: Another creed question

Originally Posted by mgrz

I don't know....I feel like if you're paying $100+ for a bottle of this stuff, it better last long and last long. What's all this about fakes, this and that? At that point, is it worth it? Lot #'s and dates? I've had it!

Not only would you like them to last long and long - but you'd also want them to have a bit of power, not just be there fairly weakly. Most of the niche scents, with the exception of Serge Lutens, many MPGs and a few Creeds, I think would leave you unsatisfied.
Renato

Re: Another creed question

Originally Posted by mgrz

I don't know....I feel like if you're paying $100+ for a bottle of this stuff, it better last long and last long. What's all this about fakes, this and that? At that point, is it worth it? Lot #'s and dates? I've had it!

Yep.

Very few Creed's make me want to jump through all the hoops to begin with. Then there is always "is it legit" question if you buy from anyone but a authorized dealer (perfumerammy, Neiman Marcus) and subsequently pay full MSRP. Then there is the age of the juice, some spoil if it has been on the shelf too long, some get better with age while some need some time to age to fully develop. Then of course there is the vintage question, "Did I get a good one?" Sometimes the exact same Creed can smell off from vintage to vintage.

Creed suffers from all these problems and more! Mix in a 10% - 15% increase in price and I am about done with them. The only two I have found I really like are Erolfa and Himalaya but much like the rest of their line the silage and longevity are average at best. I also really liked Nerolli Sauvage but the longevity there was complete joke, less than an hour!

Re: Another creed question

Originally Posted by Dead Man's Hand

Yep.

Very few Creed's make me want to jump through all the hoops to begin with. Then there is always "is it legit" question if you buy from anyone but a authorized dealer (perfumerammy, Neiman Marcus) and subsequently pay full MSRP. Then there is the age of the juice, some spoil if it has been on the shelf too long, some get better with age while some need some time to age to fully develop. Then of course there is the vintage question, "Did I get a good one?" Sometimes the exact same Creed can smell off from vintage to vintage.

Creed suffers from all these problems and more! Mix in a 10% - 15% increase in price and I am about done with them. The only two I have found I really like are Erolfa and Himalaya but much like the rest of their line the silage and longevity are average at best. I also really liked Nerolli Sauvage but the longevity there was complete joke, less than an hour!

I completely agree.

With the incredible selection and high quality of so many other houses' excellent fragrances out there vs paying an exception premium for Creed's largely uninspired fragrances coupled with the inconsistent manufacturing / quality control makes me done with Creed as well.

I currently have 4 bottles (they were the first bottles in my collection and I have more Creeds then any other house) and will hang on to them for now but I don't anticipate purchasing any new Creeds anytime in the future and may eventually sell them off in the future.

Re: Another creed question

Yeah, Dead, I have noticed that some Creed's last a long time, others not so long, and some project more than others. I got my wife a decant and that was not the smell she remembered, and then I got a bottle from I think Perfumes1, and it was legit but it does not last a long time. I think it is safe that Allshewants has legit stuff, but I worry about how the juice will be. I can get the 75 ml bottle in Memphis for $188 and tax, or I can get a tester from Allshewants for $75 and shipping. Saving over $100 is not inconsiderable. I have bought from Allshewants before, and back before he got too big, he might have smelled the juice. Now, I dont think he would do so. I wrote him and asked to buy a bottle of MI and a GIT for his initial list price, but he would only do it for the buy it now prices. If it was $125 for 75 ml, maybe I'd get it locally, but I am inclined to say that Creed has priced itself out of my wallet if I want to go to an authorized dealer.

I do feel better about there being fewer ebay auctions for GIT and MI, and am staying away from the auctions with the Black or Gold bottles. I did see one 4 oz Creed GIT being sold by a guy with a 100% rating and when you look at the large picture, it clearly shows Green Frich Tweed.

Re: Another creed question

I pulled the trigger and got a 2.5 tester from Allshewants for $83.45 delivered. Joack-with-scents told me locally there is a grey dealer that goes for around $130 or so for the 4.0 ounces, and I might have done that, but Allshewants is said to be very legit. Scentiments and others were out. Grey is grey and yes, locally, the advantage is I can smell it and maybe take it back. But I went with price. I am afraid that Creed is going to price itself out of the wallets of most of us. I'll pay $130 or so for 1.7 of Fumerie since it is so unique but even then, it is about at the top end of what I feel comfortable paying.

Re: Another creed question

1. GIT bottles 2.5oz are always in a clear bottle, except the big bottle (it is black).
2. It´s true. M.I. is now in a clear bottle!
3. It´s true. The price is now higher...in Germany 125,- Euros for 2.5oz...10,- Euros more.
4. Never buy Online
5. It´s true. the date on the box is blank...just fresh juice :-) I never had a bad bottle of juice :-)

Re: Another creed question

Actually, it'll be interesting to see what happens with Creed sales. While I suspect they may drop to the amateur enthusiasts around here, they may well increase overall.

There is a description in economics (I can't recollect what it's called) which relates to exclusive, expensive items achieving more sales as their prices go up (instead of going in the opposite direction as with most items) - when the rich segment of the market decides that those scents are indeed really aimed at them rather than at the riff raff.

Re: Another creed question

Originally Posted by Renato

Actually, it'll be interesting to see what happens with Creed sales. While I suspect they may drop to the amateur enthusiasts around here, they may well increase overall.

There is a description in economics (I can't recollect what it's called) which relates to exclusive, expensive items achieving more sales as their prices go up (instead of going in the opposite direction as with most items) - when the rich segment of the market decides that those scents are indeed really aimed at them rather than at the riff raff.

Renato

Ruggles works in luxury goods. Maybe he can assist with this question.

Re: Another creed question

Originally Posted by P-Natra

1. GIT bottles 2.5oz are always in a clear bottle, except the big bottle (it is black).
2. It´s true. M.I. is now in a clear bottle!
3. It´s true. The price is now higher...in Germany 125,- Euros for 2.5oz...10,- Euros more.
4. Never buy Online
5. It´s true. the date on the box is blank...just fresh juice :-) I never had a bad bottle of juice :-)

the new 8.4oz (GIT) is also in a clear bottle. Received one last week with 08 lot numbers on box and bottle. I do not recommend buying the large flacons anywhere there is mailing involved. They do not ship well.

Re: Another creed question

Originally Posted by finsfan

Ok, I have read and I think these are correct statements:

1. Testers in the 2.5 size are likely to be less faked
2. Recently, Creed raised prices
3. Creed is now putting GIT and MI in clear bottles, doing away with the black and gold bottles for each
4. Can't really go by dates anymore, and even then, that is no guarantee of longevity or freshness

Allshewants has some 2.5 testers on the 'bay and since these are gifts, I want to save money but get legit stuff. They run about $74.00. Sure, Id love to get the 4 oz tester for just a little more, but in a black bottle, the chances for "off" or fake juice go up.

So, what would you do.

I would post the question on the forum as you have, even if it meant incurring the wrath of The Lucaheads.

I wish I could tell you to try the Search feature on the forum regarding point # 4. but I cannot remember a definitive answer from anyone who claimed to be knowledgable regarding the dates on the boxes, the dates on the bottom of the bottle or indeed if the lack of date or lot number means that it's a fake or not.

Short of " Buy a gold Rolex for $5 from my uncle Habib" in Arabic coupled with " Green Isish Fritch " we don't know.

Apropos of Rolex, I do know that there are dozens of sites on the web selling fake ones as fake, nearly all made in China. Ditto Omegas, Panerai, etc. Yes. It's illegal. So?
There are even forums on it, with people complaining about how their order was seized by customs or how one should not trust such and such a crook, giving lists of the honest forgers. I kid you not.

This is the world we live in, so I believe I'm not running loose with paraoia if I suggest that there's a market for fake Creeds and therefore people who will 'manufacture' them--rather than just one isolated Ebay seller who sent you Coolwater inside a GIT bottle.

What am I saying? Cool Water, as the cognoscenti know, is vastly superior to GIT, so if he did, the fool did you a favor.